The Chicago Bulls are in the Kevin Love trade sweepstakes and they also want to try and sign Carmelo Anthony as a free agent and that means a Carlos Boozer trade could be on the horizon along with players like Taj Gibson, Jimmy Butler and Kirk Hinrich, as Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah need another legit scorer to become a championship squad and that could be the course Chicago takes in summer 2014 for coach Tom Thibodeau.
The Bulls come into the offseason after dealing with their second straight season of having Derrick Rose on the sidelines and after losing in the playoffs, the team realizes it needs a legit scorer to get over the hump and into championship contention. The Bulls are great when Rose is healthy, but even then, the team is offensively challenged and while Rose and Noah are elite players, the team has not done enough to generate offense and now that is why they are looking at Anthony and Love this offseason. Either way, the team has to figure out their future with Boozer, as they can't go after either player before making that move.
Noah is in for good after signing his extension and he is the best defensive player in the league at his position and has truly blossomed into a great player. This season he averaged a double-double with 12 points, 11 rebounds and five assists and he has been one player that has tried to recruit Anthony to Chicago. According to ESPN.com, Anthony has started meeting with his "team" to plot his next move and while the Knicks are looked at as the favorites to retain him, it's no guarantee he will stay. The report says that the Bulls and Rockets are his two main destinations other than NY and both teams will need to make moves to try and get him.
Gibson and Boozer may have to get moved to either pull off the trade or free up enough space for the signing and that would be tough after Gibson has developed into a very solid player. Gibson had a good season with 13 points and nearly seven rebounds per game and he will be a chip for the Bulls if they go after Love. Boozer made $15 million last season and had his worst year with the Bulls and that type of production will not cut it with his salary. Boozer averaged 13 points and eight rebounds last season and wasn't a four quarter player and he still has the amnesty provision in play and the Bulls could use that on him to free up space.
Last season the Bulls went 48-34 despite playing without Rose and their struggles on offense are the main reason why they are going after Anthony. Last season the team ranked first in team defense by points allowed and ranked 30th in scoring by points scored and that says it all right there. Rose returning would be huge with Anthony or Love in the fold and that is where the Bulls are going to focus this offseason.